Trailing 1-0 and being shut out through the first five innings of Monday’s critical series opener on the road against crosstown rival Pitman, the Turlock High varsity baseball team exploded for six runs in the sixth inning to claim victory and the program’s third straight Central California Athletic League championship.

Turlock improved to 12-1 in the CCAL, clinching the conference crown with two games left to play against second-place Pitman this week. The Pride dropped to 9-4, and will enter Wednesday with a two-game lead over the Enochs and Gregori programs, who are tied for the third and final automatic postseason berth with matching 7-6 records.

The Bulldogs pounced at the sight of a pitching change in the early stages of the fateful sixth frame. Pitman ace Ben Vilhauer had been dominant, keeping a dynamic Turlock offense quiet with his mix of fastballs, curveballs and other breaking balls. However he was the victim of a high pitch count, and was pulled after giving up a leadoff single to Cameron Henard on his 103rd offering of the afternoon.

Pitman skipper Andy Walker called upon second baseman Elias Mendez to come on in relief, the team’s most dependable reliever this season. But in his second straight appearance, the junior gave up at least four runs.

Junior Braydon Keyler dropped down a bunt single and senior Landyn Fitzgerald lined a single up the middle before junior Braiden Fuentes delivered a game-tying single to left field. It set the stage for senior Adam Torres, who entered the contest hitless in his last 12 at-bats. The slump was busted with a two-run bloop single to left on the very next pitch.

“It's a great relief,” Torres said of his go-ahead hit. “I break out of the slump with not even the best of hits, but a hit’s a hit, right? Tie game, no outs, bases loaded, I just had to put the ball in play. I did my job and got the go-ahead run across and we won the game. That’s all that matters.”

After junior Mason Hackler walked, Fuentes scored on a passed ball. Senior Cooper Pacheco then slapped an RBI single to left field on the next pitch. Junior Aiden De Los Santos drove in the final run of the game with yet another hit to left.

The first run of the inning was charged to Vilhauer, who gave up three hits and five walks while punching out three. He earned a no-decision and will finish the regular season with an impressive 7-1 record and 2.68 ERA.

Opposite of Vilhauer in the pitching matchup was Henard, who took the mound for only his second start of the season. With the luxury of having to win just one game out of the three against Pitman to clinch the CCAL championship, Turlock head coach Mike Souza opted to save Pacheco, the team’s usual Monday starter, in case the title race extended into later in the week.

The junior right-hander Henard came through, striking out five and only allowing the one run on four hits and two walks over six innings of work. The lone blemish on his line came in the third inning, when a small ball approach from Pitman’s plethora of seniors paid off. Andres Trujillo led the inning off with a walk, advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Julian Jacinto, and after a single by Nolan Walker, scored on a sacrifice fly to deep left field off the bat of Jackson Way.

From that point on, Henard limited the Pride lineup. He retired the side in order with a pair of punchouts in the fourth and worked around a two-out walk in the fifth. The Pride threatened with singles from Walker and Way to lead off the bottom of the sixth following the Turlock offensive surge, but Henard set down the next three batters with two flyouts and a strikeout.

“Mostly everything was working today,” Henard said. “I didn't get to throw my changeup today, but the slider and knuckle curve were dominant today, and my two-seam fastball was working.

“All I could do was mentally prepare myself for the start after the coaches made the decision. I just needed to pound the zone and get outs and trust my defense and trust my catcher (De Los Santos) behind the plate.”

Souza said his trust in Henard to start Monday’s game stemmed from his adjustments made in bullpen sessions and in relief appearances over the course of the season. In 19 innings, he has a 1.84 ERA with a 2:0 strikeout to walk ratio.

“Cam has been throwing lights out pretty much every game in the second half of the season for us,” Souza said. “He has a lot of confidence coming in throwing strikes. He's been a dog for us this year.”

Pacheco, who started at first base, was still able to have his moment on the bump, tasked with getting the final three outs. After Mendez reached on an error, Pacheco earned a strikeout and induced a pair of pop outs, and the celebration was on.

“I'm here for whatever the team needs to win games,” Pacheco said of handing the ball off to Henard. “Against the crosstown rivals and the stakes, it’s win at all costs.

“It feels nice to clinch in the first game. It’s like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders. But we don't just want to win one game out of these three. We’d like to end off the season with a nice little winning streak.”

Now the winners of four straight, the Bulldogs (19-6 overall) will now be playing for postseason positioning, with the goal of having a home game next week when the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs get underway.

As for the 17-8 Pride, the losing streak has hit three — the longest of the season. Just one win on either Wednesday or Friday will clinch second place. If the current trends continue, the Pride must hope for Downey to win at least one game against Gregori and for Modesto to earn its first win of the conference slate against Enochs.

The series between the Bulldogs and Pride will transition to Mark de la Motte Field on the campus of Turlock High School on Wednesday. The regular season will wrap up Friday back on the Pitman High campus in north Turlock. First pitch for each game is set for 4 p.m.